With the release of the high school football schedules last week, it brought some clarity and some much-needed good news to the Iowa sports world. For PCM, it solidified what Head Coach Greg Bonnett was hoping would be a very competitive non-district slate. The Mustangs will face three of the four teams they faced in non-district play the previous two seasons. It begins with a trip to Newton for the Jasper County showdown. That’s followed by a Week 2 trip to take on Heart of Iowa Conference newcomer West Marshall. Week 3 is the home opener against longtime rival Pella Christian, followed by a Week 4 contest at home against Knoxville. Bonnett says that crafting the non-conference schedule requires some strategy, and it will be a very formidable stretch with two larger schools and two playoff qualifiers from last season.

“It does require some thinking, because anymore you have to look at RPI, because what happens if you lose a district game. It’s a tricky equation because you have to match up and look at districts and what the team’s record your playing might be and whether it will hurt or help you. But in the end for me, for this season, I just really wanted to get as good of competition we could possibly play in our non-district games.”

The Mustangs will face a Pella Christian program that they’ve faced every season since 2008. The meeting with Knoxville will renew a colorful series that was last played in 2013. Tune in this coming fall season for every PCM football game on the KRLS3 stream.